First Impressions: Destiny

Should you change your Destiny?
Warning: May contain unintentional spoilers.

On September 9th, 2014 Destiny, a new online multiplayer first-person shooter game, was released. I remember feeling the hype coming from this game as it would be a different type of MMO and would be epic. I was jealous of how many people were playing it already as I was waiting to get my PS4 for my birthday. I heard great reviews of the game pertaining to its large sandbox style world and its great first-person shooter controls. Obviously, I had to try the game out. And I did. I bought the PS4 Destiny Bundle Edition, which I must say, I love the “glacier white” look of the Playstation. Having the basic black Playstation 2 and 3 was a bore but I thoroughly enjoy the new color option.

But back to the game itself. The developer of the game, Bungie, describes the game as a shared-world shooter, which basically aligns itself with the online functions of Grand Theft Auto 5. The difference being that you’re sharing the open world with other players and minimally interacting with them. Your minimal interactions are limited to killing the same aliens, going on a mission together, or even pointing or dancing with one another. However cute, there isn’t much player to player interaction in the story side of the game. But a plus, there are some personal characterization you can do to create your character. Choosing between three races: Human, Awoken, and Exo (all of which you can personalize their facial features) and their class: Titan, Hunter, or Warlocks. Each of these determinations will affect your story play.

The three classes characters can choose from come with their own unique powers. Courtesy of Kotaku.

The story seems to have a lot of jargon and hoopla thrown together. You’re immersed in a world where things are taken for granted, terms are not defined and you have you accept things as they are. Your Ghost, a being made of Light from this massive being called the Traveler, comes to revive you in a god-forsaken part of earth. Presumably, you’re brought back to life in some sort of junk yard of cars. You must escape this part of Earth that has been infested by creatures called The Fallen, aliens resembling insectiods.

After going through the very brief tutorial stage, you’re transported to another area of Earth called the Tower. The Tower is where you go to understand your mission for the game. You, a Guardian of the dying Human Race, must go to the worlds that were past colonized by humans and destroy all alien lifeforms to save your race from extinction. Pretty basic right? You, the hero, must save us all. Nothing too extravagant.
However boring and cliché the story may be, the gameplay is nonetheless awesome. I’ve always enjoyed first-person shooters so the mechanics are easy to understand. Depending on what class you chose (I chose being a Human Hunter), there are certain abilities you gain. Titans are strong and choose health and defense, having a more up-close and personal type of action. Hunters are agile and swift, able to get in, attack, and get out. Warlocks are a special blend of magic and warrior, able to use magic powers to aid or attack.

After going through the story mode for a while, you begin to understand the mechanics of the game. You undergo a mission, which you travel through the world and see all its high definition splendor, beat the waves of aliens, encounter and defeat the boss, and then complete the mission by activating whatever your Ghost says to you. Most of the time, incomprehensible. I didn’t feel quite that attached to the story line, as it was pretty bare and lacked finer tuning and details. So whatever is said to me goes in one ear and out the other, the only thing that matters Is the mission. So after a good way into the story, you’re allowed access to the Crucible, the Online Multiplayer PvP section of the game and then later on the Vanguard where you can take on missions with other players.

The PVP feels like a good MMO’s: bringing people together through epic combat. Courtesy of SegmentNext.com.

The PvP is much better than the story line. It has the basic Team Deathmatch, Free-for-all and capture the flag games but the objectives aren’t all that important. It’s the feel of these matches that brings the true colors of Destiny alive. You’re not facing basic AI enemies, you’re facing intelligent human beings on the other line. It requires quick and methodical strategy. Which gives it a much higher thrill factor. The online leveling seems great, players who are maybe 10 levels above you are not too much of a challenge, even if you don’t have the greatest of equipment you get the job done.

​It’s been about a week and half since I’ve played the game and what I’ve played so far has been fun. It’s a good game that has a lot of potential, especially if the developers update the game a bit more and the expansion packs are worth it. Story line is a bit boring but doable and somewhat enjoyable. The online cooperative is where I can see the developers truly paid attention to. It’s almost encouraged to have other people play with you and join the fight. Another major positive is the graphics. Really using the PS4 to its potential, the developers truly enhanced the detail. My mother, upon seeing me playing the game, commented that it looked actually real. Overall, I would give this game a solid 8 out of 10. It’s a good game, has the potential to be great, but overall a nice buy.